GROW2012 - Harnessing the Crowd - Adam Chapnick Indiegogo

Insights For EntrepreneursAdam Chapnick@adamchapnick

We’re one of approximately 540crowdfunding websitesWhen we started in 2008, we were one of one. 2

TWO Crowdfunding Sites haveraised $10MM or more in VC. We recently raised $15MM.How? We put into practice learnings from our business. 3

Make a big, fat, long, detailed, granular business plan, Then throw it away.We saw that everyone on our site isan entrepreneur, andThe campaign page proved a perfectconstraint for entrepreneurs, toseparate the contenders from thepretenders.

“We’re democratizing fundraising.YouTube in front, PayPal in back.” If you can’t move people by conveying your WHY within 3 minutes, If you can’t articulate concrete deliverables for the goal amount, If you can’t excite people with the BENEFITS they’ll get from participating (People don’t care how smart you are, they care how much money they will make), People will fund someone who can. 5

Traction comes from action. There Are No Elves. (Sorry). Great idea ≠ VC

Ideas are great, but Execution kills!We saw that Proof-of-concept Prototypes work well2nd & 3rd campaigns actually make more!?Before going for VC, we bootstrapped, hustled upcampaigners & funders to execute the elusivemarketplace modelNow the convo became,“How big, how fast?”

We saw that People don’t fund projects, People fund people.Video campaigns raise 122% more than non-videocampaignsFilm trailers were okay  with personal bookends, greatAfter 2 years of making our case, we re-emphasized theteam, with photos, personal bios and success anecdotes

The more you update, The more $$ you raise.The Crazy Sibling Phenomenon:Social proof  More sharing  Repeat fundingOur investors heard good news from us several times a week forMONTHS before each of our rounds.

Very actionable intel Percentage of Funding Raised vs Overall Average 31 Updates = 4x Avg Raise Number of Updates

Deadlines give LifeWe noticed that successful campaigns are short: avg 47 days andreach their goals in 36Unsuccessful ones are long: avg 56 daysGOTP (Get Off The Pot) deadlines are essential They help KILL CUTE BABIES They show funders that you are WILLING to fail, but not DOOMED to failWe’ve had to GOTP on:Distribber acquisitionFacebook App

We learned to“wrap up before they click away.” Thanks!

GROW2012 - Harnessing the Crowd - Adam Chapnick Indiegogo

by Dealmaker Media on Aug 28, 2012

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